The door to the room opened.
Wilder walked in carrying a bag of medicine from the pharmacy, a bottle of mineral water, and a tray holding a bowl of warm porridge.
He set the medicine and water on the small table beside the bed, then pulled a chair right up to Nyxia’s side.
Without saying much, he removed the lid from the porridge container.
Warm steam rose into the air.
Wilder picked up a spoon, stirred the contents slowly to let some of the heat escape, then looked at Nyxia.
“Open your mouth, my beloved wife.”
Nyxia eyed him warily.
Beneath the blanket, her fingers curled into a loose fist.
“I’m… not hungry.”
“The doctor said patients shouldn’t skip meals.”
“I still don’t want any.”
Wilder let out a short breath.
He didn’t get angry right away.
He simply stared at Nyxia for a few seconds, as if giving her one last chance, before holding the spoon out in front of her lips again.
Nyxia swatted it away hard.
Slap!
Porridge spilled across the white blanket and part of the table.
The warm grains spread, leaving a clear stain.
The room fell silent.
Wilder’s jaw tightened.
His gaze sharpened, as though he was holding something back.
Nyxia watched him, bracing herself for his anger.
She was even ready to hear curses or a sharp reprimand.
But the opposite happened.
Wilder only exhaled quietly, took a tissue from the nightstand, and cleaned the blanket with calm, neat movements.
After that, he took a fresh bowl of porridge that a nurse had brought earlier and sat back down in the chair.
“Don’t be an idiot,” Nyxia muttered under her breath.
“I can feed myself.”
“Your hand still has an IV.”
“I’d rather starve than eat from your hand.”
Wilder looked at her flatly.
His eyes didn’t blink.
“If you keep refusing, I’ll feed you mouth to mouth.”
Nyxia’s eyes widened.
Her breath caught for a moment.
“You’re… insane!”
“I’m only offering a solution,” Wilder replied casually, as if they were discussing the weather.
He raised the spoon again.
“So, are you going to open your mouth yourself, or do you need my help?”
Nyxia gritted her teeth.
This crazy bastard.
She stared at the spoon with disgust, then at Wilder’s face, which looked completely serious.
Afraid he might actually follow through on the threat, Nyxia finally opened her mouth with extreme reluctance.
“There we go.”
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Wilder’s lips.
“That’s a good wife.”
Nyxia chewed the porridge stiffly.
In her mind, she was imagining biting the face of the man in front of her until it broke.
Before she had even finished the first mouthful, Magnus cleared his throat quietly from the corner of the room.
“In that case, we’ll be going now.”
Nyxia turned toward him at once.
A small hope that had already died flickered back to life.
Maybe Magnus would say he would come back later.
Or at least ask if she was in pain.
Or simply touch her hand for a moment.
But Magnus only adjusted his jacket calmly.
Nova took his arm in a familiar motion, as though she had done it countless times before.
“Come on,” Nova said softly.
Magnus nodded.
“Just leave everything to your husband.”
Those words stabbed into Nyxia’s chest far deeper than she expected.
She stared at Magnus’s face, searching for even a trace of guilt.
There was none.
His eyes were calm, as if all of this was exactly how things were supposed to be.
Nova smiled sweetly at Nyxia.
“Get well soon, Sis.”
The two of them turned around.
Nova was still holding Magnus’s arm as they walked toward the door.
Even before stepping out, Nova rested her head against Magnus’s shoulder affectionately.
Magnus allowed it, even briefly stroking her arm.
Not once did they look back.
Nyxia could only stare at the door as it slowly closed.
Her chest felt so tight it was almost hard to breathe.
Only a few hours ago she had still been Magnus’s girlfriend.
Now the man was leaving with her own sister without the slightest trace of guilt.
They didn’t even try to hide how close they were in front of someone who had just survived a deadly accident.
Her eyes burned.
Tears nearly fell, but she quickly blinked them away.
She couldn’t cry.
Not in front of Wilder.
Click.
The door shut completely.
The room fell quiet again.
Only the steady beeping of the monitor beside the bed remained.
Wilder leaned back in his chair, staring at the door that had just closed with an unreadable expression.
“Interesting,” he murmured softly.
Nyxia turned quickly.
“They’ve finally stopped hiding it.”
Her brows furrowed at once.
Her heart started beating faster.
“What do you mean?”
Wilder didn’t answer right away.
He scooped another spoonful of porridge and held it out toward Nyxia.
“Open your mouth.”
“Tell me what you meant first.”
“Open your mouth.”
“Wilder!”
He let out a quiet breath, as if annoyed at having to repeat himself.
“I don’t like repeating myself.”
Nyxia kept staring at him, demanding an answer.
“Explain.”
Wilder gave a small shake of his head.
His eyes met Nyxia’s with a gaze that was hard to interpret.
“Don’t waste your energy thinking about them.” He held the spoon out again.
“Just focus on eating.”
Nyxia ignored the spoon.
She pushed it away lightly but firmly.
“Wilder, answer my question.”
He looked at her for several long seconds.
His gaze was deep, as though he was weighing something.
“There are many things you still don’t know.”
A pause.
“But not today.”
He raised the spoon in front of Nyxia’s lips once more.
“Right now… eat.”
Nyxia continued staring at him, clearly unsatisfied with the answer.
Curiosity and suspicion mixed together in her chest.
This man knew something.
Far more than he was showing.
Wilder finally set the spoon down on the edge of the bowl.
He looked at Nyxia seriously, without a smile, without his usual teasing.
“From now on, I’ll be the one taking care of you.”
The words were spoken calmly, almost like a promise.
And precisely because there was no smile on his face, Nyxia felt even more unsettled.